#133 Top 10 Things You Should Do To Avoid Colds
Dr. John Day Dr. Day is a cardiologist specializing in heart rhythm abnormalities at St. Mark’s Hospital in Salt Lake City, Utah. He graduated from Johns Hopkins Medical School and completed his residency and fellowships in cardiology and cardiac electrophysiology at Stanford University. He is the former president of the Heart Rhythm Society and the Utah chapter of the American College of Cardiology. |
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Top 10 Things You Should Do To Avoid Colds
I opened my hospital report, 100% hand washing for the month. “Not bad,” I thought. At least I was doing my small part to stop the spread of the common cold.
Even with hand washing, the average adult will still get two to three colds each year. This translates to 20 million doctor visits and 40 million sick days in the U.S. alone.
Even more worrisome is that during the peak winter virus season, up to 14% of all heart attack deaths are due to upper respiratory tract infections. I also see viral infections triggering other heart problems like atrial fibrillation.
As my patients depend on me, I can’t afford to get sick. You also have too much going on in your life to get sick. To help you not get sick this season, here are my top 10 scientifically proven things you should do to avoid colds.
1. Get Enough Sleep
Most people assume that hand washing is the most important thing in preventing colds. While hand washing is important, sleep seems to be even more important.
I suspect this is because everywhere you go in the winter you are surrounded by viruses. Even if your hands are always washed, you can’t stop everyone else from coughing, sniffling, or sneezing on you. Your immune system must be functioning at 100% to beat off these viral invaders.
For me, it seems like every cold I have caught in the last 10 years has been while sleep deprived. Indeed, studies show that sleeping less than 7 hours a night triples your risk of a cold.
2. Zinc
Since the first major study on zinc and colds was published in 1984, there has been a lot of excitement about zinc. While not every study has agreed with the 1984 findings, most studies report that zinc may prevent and shorten the duration of colds.
We aren’t quite sure how zinc helps but it is likely due to strengthening the immune system and blocking viruses from attaching to your nasal or throat passages.
If you do take zinc supplements caution is required as zinc is not without side effects. More serious side effects include disrupting your zinc/copper balance and the possibility of neurological diseases from either too little or too much zinc.
The best natural sources of zinc are from meat, seeds, or legumes.
Personally, I have occasionally taken zinc lozenges, in lower doses, when everyone around me seems to be sick. I’m not sure whether this helps or not but it does give me piece of mind that I am doing everything possible to not get sick.
3. Don’t Touch Your Face
Without realizing it, most people touch their nose, mouth, or eyes. I know I find it challenging not to touch my face unless I have thoroughly washed my hands. It is also common for me to see patients under anesthesia still reaching for their face.
Perhaps this is why studies show that wearing a surgical mask may be more effective than hand washing in preventing the common cold. With a mask on it is hard to touch your face.
While surgical masks help prevent the spread of illness in the hospital, it would look strange if you wore one every day to the office. However, you can help to create a policy where anyone who decides to go to work sick wears a surgical mask.
Likewise, a simple reminder, like a bandaid on your right index finger, can remind you not to touch your face. The scratching sensation of the bandaid or tape on your face will quickly remind you not to touch your face.
4. Meditate
Stressful life events double your chances of getting a cold. The more your stress the higher your chances of getting sick.
Stress weakens your immune system. Fortunately, meditation is one of the best antidotes for stress. For example, one study showed that meditation reduced sick days by 76%.
Meditation is not just for Buddhist monks. Even the Bible, in Joshua 1:8, teaches meditation may help you to prosper and have good success. According to reports, Fortune 500 companies, like Google, Apple, and Aetna, now offer meditation or mindfulness classes to employees.
Recent reports show that doctors are writing more meditation prescriptions to help their patients. While I am not meditating every day, I do periodically meditate.
If you not yet tried meditation, try sitting in a quite place for 5 minutes. You don’t even need to get into a yoga pose–a comfortable chair works just as well.
Close your eyes. Take slow and deep breaths. Clear your mind. If you can’t clear your mind, try reflecting on your life’s purpose or happy memories.
5. Exercise
Every day patients tell me they don’t have time to exercise. I get it. With family, work, and social responsibilities it can be difficult to carve out even 20 minutes to exercise.
However, if you consider that the average adult has cold symptoms 25 days a year, that means you are sick 600 hours each year. One study showed that just 2.5 hours a week of exercise reduced sick days by 52%. Thus, 130 hours a year of exercise (21 minutes daily), can prevent 312 hours of feeling crapy from a cold.
Exercise definitely doesn’t mean you have to start going to the gym. Walking is one of the best forms of exercise. Find something you enjoy and do it every day.
If you are not exercising now, start slow. Of course, if taken to an extreme, excessive exercise could actually increase your chances of getting a cold. If you have medical problems, talk with your physician first before starting an exercise program.
6. Vitamin C
Right up there with chicken noodle soup, your mother probably told you to get your vitamin C when you were starting to come down with a cold. While the science doesn’t support the soup, there may be some truth to the vitamin C.
Although medical studies are somewhat conflicting, many studies report that vitamin C may help. Rather than reaching for vitamin C supplements, natural food sources are best.
For example, one cup of my favorite vegetable, broccoli, provides 135% of the daily vitamin C you need. If broccoli is not your thing, one large orange will also get you to 100%.
As I used to get sick after plane trips in the winter, I now pack a bag of broccoli. I’m not sure if it is the vitamin C or a placebo effect, but when I eat my broccoli I don’t get sick.
7. Probiotics, Prebiotics, and a Healthy Diet
Over the last decade there have been many studies evaluating probiotics and colds. While not every study has shown benefit, most studies show it helps.
This makes sense as 70% of your immune system is in your gut. To optimize your immune system, you need a healthy gut flora. Just as important as probiotics for a healthy gut are prebiotics or fiber.
A high fiber diet promotes healthy gut bacteria and the Standard American Diet (SAD), which is high in processed foods, added sugars, and saturated fats from animal sources, promotes disease causing gut bacteria. In addition to gut flora changes, studies show that an unhealthy diet increases inflammation and weakens the immune system.
To stay healthy this year, make sure you get your recommended 9 servings daily of fruits and vegetables as well as fiber from other sources like legumes and whole grains. As people with weak immune systems may be at risk from probiotics, please discuss this with your physician first.
8. Wash Your Hands
Cold viruses may survive up to 24 hours on door knobs, faucets, or light switches. Yikes!
While studies do show that washing your hands can prevent the common cold, the data are not as strong as one might suspect. The biggest benefit of hand washing may be for those people who are around small children.
At my hospital, doctors are secretly watched to see if they are washing their hands. Speaking from personal experience, knowing you are being watched improves behavior. The only draw back is that most people in the healthcare field suffer from skin problems due to washing their hands 50 or more times each day.
As anything you touch may be infected with the cold virus, it is critically important that you regularly wash your hands. This is especially important if you need to touch your face for any reason.
9. Do the “Elbow Bump”
You never know who may be getting sick. Every hand shake may be your next cold.
If you don’t want to get sick this year, either don’t shake hands or wash your hands with soap and water after each hand shake. An even better socially accepted way to greet people is to do the “elbow bump.”
The elbow bump is easy to do. Just touch elbows with the person you are greeting. Many of my physician colleagues now only do elbow bumps when greeting people.
10. Breathe Clean Air
For decades it has been known that the quality of the air you breathe is directly related to your chances of getting a cold. When it comes to air quality and colds, smokers suffer the most. Indeed, studies confirm that smoking damages the bronchial air ways and weakens the immune system.
Even non-smokers are at risk. As indoor air pollution is often two to five times worse than outside air, it is important that the air in your home and place of work is clean.
The best way to breathe clean air is to either have a well ventilated area or buy a HEPA air filter. Perhaps this explains why so many people get sick after air travel as the air on a plane is just recirculated from one sick person to another.
Cold Remedies that Didn’t Make the List
There are many other cold remedies that did not make this list. While these therapies may have helped you, they have not been shown to help others in medical studies.
One such popular remedy is echinacea. Unfortunately, medical studies have shown no benefit. Other popular cold remedies that are also lacking in data are gargling water, garlic, ginseng, nasal irrigation, honey, elderberry, or herbal teas.
Final Thoughts
I hate colds. The purpose of this article was to help you also do everything possible to minimize your risk of another cold this season.
What have you found that helps with colds? Please share your experience in the comments section below.
Disclaimer Policy: This website is intended to give general information and does not provide medical advice. This website does not create a doctor-patient relationship between you and Dr. John Day. If you have a medical problem, immediately contact your healthcare provider. Information on this website is not intended to diagnose or treat any condition. Dr. John Day is not responsible for any losses, damages or claims that may result from your medical decisions.
I am a mechanical engineer and have designed a few operating room air conditioning systems. Maintaining the room at around 40 to 50 percent relative humidity was always the criteria. The rationale was that bacteria has a harder time living in that condition rather than having more or less moisture in the air. I installed and have had a central humidifier system in my house for years. It seems like we had fewer colds than our friends. Our skin seems to be less dry. Am I imagining things or are there studies to support this? I continue to enjoy your newsletter. Thanks.
Hi Bryce,
Thank you so much for your comments. While I could not find any convincing data on this to share in the article, it seems to be working for you. It is certainly possible that with the moister air it keeps your bronchial airways functioning properly. You definitely can’t argue with success.
Best,
John
TEMPERATURE. Although I’ve never practiced it consistently, I can remember THINKING that I had shortened the experience of a cold by “sweating it out”–i.e., covering up and thereby raising my temperature so the virus couldn’t survive. The theory is that bacteria and virus strains thrive in an environment (or host) of ideal or near-ideal temperature, and that’s why our bodies get fevers as a natural way of fighting infections–which I’ve also heard is why dogs and other animals often get different strains of diphtheria or other diseases than do humans–they simply have different body temperatures. I don’t know what the official medical opinion on this might be (Dr. Day?), but I can see some rationale in the theory of it. Also, some people surmise that we get more “colds” and sicknesses in the winter simply because we spend more time indoors and around other people with a higher concentration of exposure to the diseases of others; I, on the other hand, have always felt that temperature changes in the atmosphere not only have some effect on body temperatures, but also induce a form of STRESS on the body, which thereby lowers the level of natural “resistance” to infections. Again, lots of theories, experiences, and opinions–but I think it’s somewhat ironic that we spend such astronomical amounts of time and money studying things like the planet Pluto, when we still have such a seemingly poor understanding of things like the common cold.